Stray Bullet
by Literaturefangirl
Summary: A series of hurt/comfort stories revolving around Hanzo and other members of Overwatch. Inspired by the roles of Toshiro Mifune.
1. Stray Bullet

He understood why they had put him up this. As the place of his birth, Hanzo was intimately familiar with the Hanamura region. But that didn't mean he was happy about it. Intercept a delivery of black market firearms before the Yakuza gets their hands on it. A simple, one to two-person job at best. One to retrieve the objective and the other to watch his back. But that was where the problem lay; the person guarding his back. Hanzo could not trust the senses of a man that was half machine, especially one that he believed had been dead for years. Even if the man was his own kin.

Finding the weapons dealer was no easy task. On a sweltering day such as this one, the winding maze of houses and shops forced Hanzo and Genji to cover a lot ground; tiring them in the process. Beads of sweat rolled down Hanzo's forehead, making his long fringe cling to it. Even Genji whose armour had its own internal ventilation system found himself panting due to the heat. Despite the heavy weather, the brothers continued their search. Albeit with slower gaits to conserve their strength. Realizing that they were making little progress, Hanzo gave the order to split up.

"We must divert our efforts. I will search the south side. You will cover the north."

Genji nodded as an answer and took off. With more work ahead of him, Hanzo sighed. The exhalation of air giving him slight relief from the suffocating heat. Walking through the tight alleyways, all Hanzo could see were empty streets and the occasional person walking by. As Hanzo began to grow weary from yet another setback, he spotted something promising; a man up ahead wearing a black jacket, carrying a large wooden crate. This was the target they were after. Pulling out his bow and nocking an arrow, Hanzo took aim and released the bow string. But the man saw it coming and quickly stepped aside, narrowly missing the path of the arrow. Taking a gun out of his holster, the man retaliated by shooting the arm of the man responsible for firing the arrow.

As the bullet hit Hanzo's arm, the expression on his face was not a pained one. Instead, it was one of anger. Ignoring the blood freely trickling down his arm, letting his bow clatter to the ground, Hanzo cried out with rage at the dealer for managing to hurt him. Threatened by his response, the dealer fired his gun at Hanzo once more. But the second bullet never reached him, thanks to the surprising return of Genji, jumping down from the roof and swiftly deflecting the bullet with his sword.

Confronted with the sudden appearance of an ally with a very large green, glowing sword, the dealer dropped the crate and bolted away from the scene. Overcome with weakness, Hanzo's body began its downward descent towards the ground. But Genji does not allow this to happen. Catching him from behind, Genji gently lowered Hanzo to the ground. But the archer was reluctant to rest.

"I… must continue." Hanzo feebly protested, with a hand pressing down on his wound as hard as he could manage, to stifle the flow of blood. Even when wounded, Hanzo would never allow his warrior's spirit to wane. No matter what the circumstances, he would not be deterred.

"You are exhausted, brother. You must seek proper care." Genji cautioned against this, concerned for his brother's well-being.

"No!" Hanzo tried to rise up, only serving to hurt himself even more.

"If you will not help yourself, then I _will._ " Genji threatened. Angered by his stubborn brother's refusal for medical attention, before Hanzo succumbed to his injury and lost consciousness.

It wasn't the numb feeling in his arm he noticed at first, when he opened his eyes. Rather, it was the refreshing breeze of the air conditioning in his hospital room. An apt reward for his hours of wandering around the district and the apprehension of the man responsible for such a wild goose chase. At least he thought, they had apprehended him. Hanzo's memory was fuzzy beyond the point of getting shot. Had Genji arrested the man after catching him in his arms? He hoped so. Just as thoughts of his brother had creeped into his mind, the voice of the man broke the silence.

"I have no more blood left to give you Hanzo, but the doctor tells me they found a donor."

Hanzo thought that was supposed to be good news. He had lost a lot of blood and was bound to need a transfusion. But the way Genji had slyly uttered it, left Hanzo wondering if there was more meaning to that remark. It didn't matter now, because Hanzo needed to respond appropriately.

"Evidently." Hanzo retorted with a sharp tone. A sign that Hanzo was back to his normal self, Genji thought.

"Did you capture the criminal after he made his escape?" Hanzo asked the question pressing on his mind.

"No, because I was taking you to a hospital." Genji spoke in his defence, his reasons most honourable. His only concern had been to keep his brother alive. Anything else, such as a criminal didn't matter.

"A poor decision, Genji." Hanzo reproached Genji's choice. Despite the fact that he knew that Genji's best intentions had saved his life.

"Had I left you there, over time the loss of blood would have killed you." Genji explained, making the point clear for even an obstinate man like Hanzo to see.

"If that were true, you would not still be with us today!" Hanzo countered with spiteful logic, demonstrating that he had yet to accept the man Genji had become and the responsibility he held for Genji taking that path.

"I see that rage still flows through you, brother. Like the blood that spilled down your arm." Calmly observed, in an attempt to placate his furious brother. It saddened him to see his brother still carry such anger, but it saddened him even more when he heard what Hanzo had to say.

"I now bear the mark of failure upon my arm, for everyone to see! Always reminding me of my mistake!" Hanzo revealed his true thoughts to Genji, with an anguished voice. But Genji suspected that this was about more than a scarred arm, when Hanzo made his confession. Even if he didn't realize it himself.

So Genji did the only thing he could and imparted the wisdom that he himself had learned.

"It is true that your arm has changed, but it will _heal_ with time." Genji reassured him with information he was certain was true.

"And you believe I am supposed to accept this?" Hanzo asked. A little sceptical about Genji's faith.

"I do not believe you are supposed to accept anything. I can only hope." Genji answered. There was no pressure or expectations for his brother to do anything. Only trust that the future would grant Hanzo the healing he deserved.

"I… will try." Hanzo told him, his voice a little subdued. But it was an effort that Genji was relieved to see.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Thank you very much for reading my story, I hope you enjoyed it. This chapter was based on the movie Stray Dog (1949.)  
**


	2. Yojimbo

They made a good team, the two of them, Hanzo thought. The soldier and the assassin. She put their adversaries to sleep with her darts and impeccable aim and he would sneak into enemy lines, snapping a few arms in the process if need be. Today, Ana and Hanzo were charged with keeping the peace. A recent outbreak of thugs augmented by drugs were terrorizing people on the streets. Using their newfound physiques to strongarm civilians into giving up their valuable possessions. But having received sketchy intel, the number of enemy hostiles they had to deal with had been greatly understated.

"We need to split up. I've received new intel that the leader of their movement has retreated to an abandoned factory where they are storing the stolen goods. Can you deal with the remaining numbers?" Ana took charge and asked her partner.

"Consider it done." Hanzo assured her. There were only a few men left. Nothing he couldn't handle.

"Very good. I will rendez-vous with you here, when I am finished." Ana acknowledged and headed towards the leader's refuge, leaving Hanzo to manage by himself.

When Hanzo had told Ana he could deal with whoever remained, he hadn't expected that number to be non-existent. The streets he had defended minutes ago, were now deserted. Had they tired from all the punishment they had received and left? Hanzo wondered. It seemed too easy.

Hanzo received the answer to that question, when he felt himself being forcefully grabbed from behind and flung into a wall by a gargantuan man. That was when he realized why the cowardly men had fled. They had delegated the task of eliminating him, to the biggest and strongest amongst them. A surprisingly clever move, for criminals dumb enough to take experimental substances.

Stunned by the sudden impact, Hanzo tried to rise to his feet, but was promptly grabbed by the ankles and flung to the ground once again. Like a piece of meat being tenderized. Hanzo groaned from being assaulted once again, so soon. But his opponent was not done with him.

Flipping Hanzo over to his back, the monster of a man clenched his fingers into a fist, ready to land a punch on Hanzo's already bloodied face. But his assailant never got the chance, thanks to a well-aimed sleep dart from Ana's sidearm. Her target now unconscious, Ana hurried over and pushed him aside, kneeling down by Hanzo's side.

"Forgive me. I should not have left you behind." Ana apologized. Feeling responsible for the injuries inflicted upon him, as a result of her leaving her partner behind.

"The blame lies with me. I did not expect such strength from a man." Hanzo shifted the blame to himself, in a remarkably humble way. Showing that even in defeat, the man who strove for perfection accepted his losses with dignity.

"You look like one of the dead." Ana remarked bluntly, in the only way she knew.

Despite being on the receiving end of such a brutal beating, leaving him with a black eye and his face dribbling with blood, Hanzo recognized the humour in the situation and gave her a wry smile.

"It's even worse when you smile." Ana responded, not going along it. But inside she was smiling. It was encouraging to see Hanzo keep his spirits high, despite all that had happened to him. But she wasn't about to let it show.

"Can you walk to the teleporter?" Ana felt the need to ask, when she saw Hanzo's smile falter and his eyelids drooping.

"Yes." Hanzo replied, accepting Ana's outstretched hand and pulling himself up slowly. Clutching his bruised arm, Hanzo then began limping in the direction of the teleporter.

She could have given him a helping hand with the help of one of her healing biotic darts. But all her years of experience raising Fareeha had taught Ana, that a person needed their independence. In both their victories and in their defeats. So she let Hanzo limp away without aid. Healing could wait.

* * *

 **Author's Note: I loved the brief interactions between Ana and Hanzo in the Halloween event. We need more of those. That's why I thought she would be the perfect character to play the role of the innkeeper who helps the protagonist in Yojimbo after he gets beaten up.**


	3. Dragon's Last Sun

It was that air of confidence that Hanzo admired in Jesse McCree. That cocky assurance that things would go his way, even when he was dealing with a dangerous outlaw. It came with the territory, being a former outlaw himself after all. Hanzo wasn't one to pry into a man's past, he only knew the contents of McCree's personal file, from a cursory read. But he knew enough to understand that today, McCree was facing the ghosts of his past. Illegal firearms—A stolen armoured truck filled with gold. It could have been one of his targets in his Deadlock Gang days had he taken a more ambitious path…

But if there was any discomfort to be felt, McCree didn't show it. He had served Overwatch for a long time, now. He didn't need to prove himself, nor did he feel any guilt for his past ways when looking at James McGee—the man behind the highjacking.

"It's mighty foolish of you to try and spring an ambush on me with such a small posse." McGee remarked, when he saw that McCree was only accompanied by Hanzo. They had littered the dirt roads with the bodies of his men, but while their ally Mercy was tending to their wounds, Jesse was left with the company of one man. Giving McGee the impression that McCree was unprepared. But this was not the case.

"Give it up McGee and we'll have mercy on you." McCree called for his surrender. Ignoring the outlaw's gibe. They had already taken out all his men and McCree had little patience dealing with an outlaw too stubborn to realize there was no use holding out.

"What? So you can give me a sheriff's badge and make me join your little Overwatch gang?" McGee sneered, mocking the second chance that McCree had been given. There was no way it would come to that.

"No. So I don't put a bullet in your head. That's a fair deal, ain't it?" McCree asked, showing that he wasn't kidding around. Even if the situation seemed like a joke to the outlaw. McCree did not treat it as such.

"It's a fine piece of work, what you did to my men out there… But I reckon that you don't have any bullets left." McGee gave Jesse a fake compliment to go with his bluff. The odds were turning against his favour. He would have to think of something fast, if he wanted any chance to escape.

"And how much are you puttin' on that bet?" McCree called his bluff. Peacekeeper had two bullets left in its chamber. The man had no options. There was no harm in calling his bluff, was there?

"His life." McGee answered simply and fired his gun at Hanzo. Ducking away from McCree and making his get away with the armoured truck.

"Hanzo!" McCree shouted his teammate's name as Hanzo fell to the ground. As fast as Hanzo fell, McCree was already down on his knees, by his side. The bullet had not hit any vital organs, but the entry wound in Hanzo's abdomen was bleeding profusely, staining his fingers with blood. But though his hand was near the wound, Hanzo made no effort to stop the flow of blood.

"Hang on now! Help's on the way!" McCree quickly pressed Hanzo's idle hand on the wound to stop the bleeding. Assuming that Hanzo was in too much shock to move it himself.

"If my life is to end. I am content to die on the battlefield." Hanzo revealed grimly. It was now McCree's turn to be shocked. The man hadn't moved his hand because he couldn't, it was because he didn't want to.

"You got a death wish or somethin'?" McCree asked, trying to make sense of it all. Hanzo was a skilled fighter. McCree was certain that he could pull through. So why was the man resigning to his fate without a fight?

Ignoring McCree's question, Hanzo remained silent.

"Well, it ain't happening on my watch!" McCree declared and took off to find Mercy.

"Forgive me, Genji." Hanzo said in a voice barely above a whisper. It didn't matter if no one heard it. These final words were for himself, a final testament of his feelings said aloud before he died.

Closing his eyes, Hanzo heard a series of bangs in the distance. Had his allies stopped the man who had grievously wounded him? Or was it the other way around? Hanzo let the thought drift away, allowing the darkness to consume his thoughts, as his consciousness began to fade.

" _Heroes never die_!"

Were those his last words? Or his first? Hanzo wasn't sure. All he could feel was the rejuvenating force of Mercy's healing beam permeating his body, mitigating the weariness caused from his wound and replacing it with newfound vigour.

"Almost lost you there, partner. We can't have that." Hanzo heard McCree's relieved voice. The cowboy who had rushed to guide Mercy towards him, was standing right beside her. Both with relieved expressions on their faces.

"Thank you, both." Hanzo rose and thanked the two people who had saved his life. Though it had been his wish to die honourably that day, Hanzo recognized the debt of gratitude that he owed and gave them both his most sincere thanks.

"I will see you both, back at the base." Mercy told them and took to the sky. Leaving the two men by themselves.

"The next time you're dyin', don't be so quick to give up, ya hear?" McCree aired his concerns out in the open with some friendly advice for Hanzo.

Taken aback by McCree's surprising frankness, Hanzo nodded in agreement.

* * *

 **Author's Note: This is the last of my Mifune drabbles. It's based on the 1970's western movie Red Sun (it's about a samurai escorting an outlaw across the country and they eventually bond) which I highly recommend. The movie handles the samurai's wounds a little differently, but I wanted to write a story where McCree is surprised by Hanzo's passiveness when he's on his deathbed.**


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